France Invites China to Attend G-8 Summit

Published 8:00 pm, Thursday, April 24, 2003

France's prime minister on Friday invited China's president to meet with the world's wealthiest nations at their annual summit, boosting Beijing's aspirations to be considered a major economic power.

But in Paris, a spokesman for the next summit's host French President Jacques Chirac said China would meet the G-8 heads of state only on the sidelines of the conference on its opening day.

Still, the invitation by Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin to President Hu Jintao strengthens China's drive to win membership in the exclusive club as well as validation as the world's largest developing economy.

"We hope Hu will be able … to take part in the G-8 meeting in Evian that will be hosted by President Chirac," Raffarin said at a news conference. "The response that we got from the Chinese side has been extremely positive."

The G-8 _ made up of the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Russia _ is scheduled to meet June 1-3 in the Alpine town of Evian, France.

Russia _ now a full member _ gained membership after initially being invited only to talk on the sidelines.

The invitation also lifts China's image at a time when it battling international criticism for its slow response to an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome.

For France, the China initiative paints it as a positive diplomatic player on the world stage and offsets its recent role at the United Nations in leading the group opposed to the U.S. war in Iraq.

In Paris, the spokesman for Chirac said the move is part of an effort to widen cooperation on world affairs.

Raffarin's very arrival on Friday was a political boost for China's government, which has seen international sports events and visits by other foreign leaders called off because of the SARS epidemic.

"You come at a special time for the Chinese people, when we are fighting SARS," Premier Wen Jiabao told Raffarin at the start of talks in the Great Hall of the People in the heart of Beijing.

The nationwide SARS death toll stood at 115 Friday, with 42 fatalities in Beijing. In Beijing, a third hospital was sealed off and more than 4,000 people were quarantined at home.

Raffarin said he wanted to "show solidarity" as China fights the deadly flu-like disease. But he cut back his trip from three days to two and canceled an excursion to Shanghai amid rising fears about SARS.

Still, Raffarin was the first major leader to visit Beijing amid the SARS outbreak. Vice President Dick Cheney and Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong of Singapore canceled visits.

Raffarin's office said he had brought a supply of protective gauze masks, but reporters did not see him wearing one.

Wen greeted his French counterpart with elaborate ceremony outside the hall overlooking Tiananmen Square. A 60-piece military band played the Chinese and French national anthems as soldiers on the square fired artillery.

The Communist Party secretary of Beijing, whose city has quarantined thousands of people because of the SARS virus, thanked Raffarin for coming.

"In this current special situation, you came here and I truly appreciate this spirit," Liu Qi said.

Asked at the news conference whether Chinese leaders explained their government's slow response to SARS, Raffarin said he saw a "national mobilization" to fight the disease.

"We must show solidarity because it is the kind of event that could happen to the whole world of today. Viruses know no borders," Raffarin said later.

Raffarin said he and the Chinese leaders discussed Iraq and that France and China "share positions" on the importance of a United Nations role in rebuilding Iraq, but he gave no details.

France and China, both permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, opposed the U.S.-led attack that overthrew the government of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

Earlier on Friday, Raffarin and Wen witnessed the signing of contracts for the sale of 30 jetliners from France's Airbus Industrie destined for use by a Chinese airline.

"It's good to have economic agreements because it creates jobs, and 30 Airbuses is a lot of jobs," Raffarin said. In Paris, Airbus said the deal was worth about $1.7 billion.